#ZumaMustFall marches racist – ANC

The ANC on Wednesday claimed the poor attendance at the #ZumaMustFall marches was an affirmation that President Jacob Zuma’s decision to appoint Pravin Gordhan as minister of finance was generally accepted by South Africans. By Genevieve Quintal, NewsAgency

“What is notable in these marches is that they are organised by a few groups of people who seem not to be interested about fiscal policies of the country,” spokesperson Zizi Kodwa told News24.

“They’ve got other interests, such as regime change, and they harbour racist hatred.”

Kodwa said the ANC had noted that there was an old South African flag at one of the marches, which was a reflection of what the marches were about.

Thousands of protesters marched in various cities, including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and George.

Zuma faced a backlash after he announced last week that he was replacing Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene with ANC MP Des van Rooyen.

There was a public outcry and calls for Zuma to be recalled over the move, which saw the rand reach record lows. Four days after the announcement Zuma backtracked, replacing Van Rooyen with Gordhan as finance minister, which saw the rand recover somewhat.

Kodwa said those who marched on Wednesday were pretending to be fighting for democracy, yet they could not co-exist in a democratic, non-racial South Africa.

“It’s not genuine and it’s hypocritical, given the call and the people who are behind these marches.”

The ANC welcomed the fact that many people had not attended what it called the “racist agenda” of #ZumaMustFall. – News24